Andropov's Legacy in Putin's Foreign Policy

On June 15, Russia celebrated the 90th birthday of the late Yuri Andropov, secretary general of the Communist Party (CPSU) for 15 months and the head of the KGB for 15 years. Marking historical dates on the calendar has traditionally been a key part of Russian political discourse, both officially and unofficially. But the stream of commentary in the Russian media transcended the cursory; a distinct anxiety is recognizable, as if commentators have been trying to guess what screw President Vladimir Putin will turn next in Russia. Putin has hidden his admiration for Andropov in the past. So recent initiatives to erect a monument to him in Petrozavodsk (Gazeta, 9 June, EDM June 9) or to rename a school and a tanker in his honor seem to align with Putin's 1999 decision to re-install a special plaque on the Lubyanka building, headquarters of the KGB (Polit, 15 June; Grani, 15 June). ...